Time To Change
by ChidorixCixBritannia
Summary: Sent back to when Saphira's egg first appeared, how will Eragon be able to change the fate of those he cares about? How much of his past will he change for the better? As before, the fate of Alageasia rests on our dragon rider's shoulders. (Rated M so that I have freedom to write whatever and not worry.)


**I, unfortunately, don't own this wonderful cycle, or its characters, or Alagaesia, or even a wonderfully handsome dragonrider, (tear). How cruel the world is! **  
**Seriously.**

**Everything, except the idea of this fictitious fan-writing, belongs to my man Chis P. So don't sue, please.**

**Captain**

**P.S,**  
**This has MAJOR spoilers for Brisingr, and does not include any of the events that have transpired in Inheritance. Truthfully, I found the last book... lacking, in some way. **

**That's just my personal opinion...**

* * *

Eragon was sitting on the walls of Feinster, Saphira by his side. Her shadow fell over him and the edge of the wall, and onto the ground far below them. Both of them were silently mourning the loss of their mentors.

They were both still, looking out into the distance and straight into the setting sun. It was calm, but not peaceful; it seemed as if the world could not be completely at peace until the dark tyrant sitting upon the throne in the city of Uru'Baen had lost his rule over Alagaesia.

The wind could be heard as it blew past them, taking vibrant fall leaves with it, and far below them you could hear the soft sounds of city life.

The Varden had moved into the city two days ago, after the bodies of the dead had been buried, and the issue of housing had been resolved.

The Varden now occupied all the taverns and inns, the unoccupied keep, the noble's homes, and some of the houses that had been deserted. Another of the nobles' houses had been turned into a hospital where the wounded, (both the Varden and the citizens of Feinster), were being treated.

Shortly after the battle, Lady Nasuada and Lady Lorana had calmly addressed the people of Feinster and the Varden, telling them of the Varden's goals, and that they would not harm the inhabitants of the city, among other ground rules for the peoples.

Soon after that, the lady was moved to her rooms, where some of the most proficient magic users in the city, including one or two of the elven guards, tended to the matter of Galbatorix's oaths within her mind.

Somewhat weary and feeling powerless, Eragon said to Saphira, _I wonder what would have happened had I been better trained from the beginning... I cannot help but think had you chosen a more experienced person, fewer people would have fallen in this war._

_Eragon!_ Saphira exclaimed, angrily puffing smoke from her nostils, _how many times have I told you this!You are my rider, and I would have it no other way! I had felt almost all the elves touch my egg, and most of the Varden, but none of them called to me. When I felt your touch, I knew I had met my rider! Fate destined us to be dragon and rider, as it should be. No other would I let on my back, or in my heart! There may be those more educated than you were, but you learned from your mistakes, and you surpassed many stupid peoples' expectations! _

Eragon sighed, and muttered inside his mind, _I cannot imagine my life without you anymore, and it pains me to think of someone else being your rider, but I wished that so many people had needlessly died for my lack of an education!_

Out loud, he mumbled with conviction, "I wish I had had more time!"

At those words, there was a bright light, and then all was black.

* * *

When Eragon awoke, he was on a roll upon the floor, rocks digging uncomfortably into his back.

He automatically reached for the sword at his hip, and found the belt of Beloth the Wise missing.

Eragon sat up quickly in a defensive position, ready to attack at a moments notice.

He warily examined his surroundings. It appeared that he was in a small clearing in a forest that touched upon something in his mind, upon his memories.

There was a small pond on the west side of the clearing, and the noises the water made as it ran over rock calmed him slightly.

There were no signs of other people, and there were the remains of a small fire a few feet away. By his side, there was a wood frame pack and a buckskin tube that held his old yew bow.

He gasped in surprise. _This is my old bow! I thought it had broken when I was in Ellesmera!_  
Then, he suddenly remembered, _Saphira! _

There was silence to his mental call. He felt for the place her mind was connected to his, and found only the farthest bounds of his own mind.

He looked down at his hands, and found that not only was he not wearing the gloves he swore he had been wearing before he became unconscious, Aren was missing from upon his finger, and there was no gedwey ignasia upon his palm!

Along with that, it appeared as though the scar upon his wrist from the accident at the farm had reappeared, so he guessed that all his other scars had as well.

He tried to remember what had happened before the bright light. He had been conversing with Saphira, and had said how he wished that he had had more time. Only one logical conclusion came to mind; he had traveled back to when he was still only a simple farmboy.

That meant he must be in the Spine!

He suddenly felt extremely stupid. _This was the clearing I had slept in before Arya had sent Saphira's egg to me!_

He walked over to the small pond, and examined his appearance. He looked as he did when he was fifteen, before Garrow's death, but had all the muscle he had right before the Agaeti Blodhren. **(1.)**

Slowly, it dawned on him... He had a remarkable opportunity gifted upon him! He could now stop so many people from dying, so much needless blood from being lost!

Names and the people they belonged to streamed through his head.

_Brom, Garrow, Hrothgar, Murtagh, (who might as well be dead), Oromis, Glaedr, Ajihad! So many people I didn't even know the names of that had died fighting against the empire, or even trapped by King Galbatorix to fight this war!_

But then a more pressing matter came to mind. Eragon's stomach was rumbling, and he still had to track something to take back to the farm.

After eating some food from his pack, Eragon gathered his things, and stood up.

He reached his mind out, feeling the plants around him, the small organisms embedded in the soil, the colonies of ants and bees. He felt small birds and squirrels high in the trees, and rabbits and snakes upon the forest floor.

He reached beyond the immediate vicinity, beyond the smaller animals and plants, and reached for the larger animals, the ones with brighter life forces.  
He felt a fox and it's kits to the south, a pack of wolves to the west, and a herd of deer about about a league northeast. **(2.)**

Eragon sighed, and then began to run. The soft forest floor made an easy track, and his muscles soon began to loosen. He relished the feeling of running freely, and only wished he had Saphira to share it with.

He ran past miles of trees, and felt the small animals running away from him as he flashed past.

Eragon kept careful track of the sun's path through the gaps between the trees, as he remembered the sun having already set when Saphira's egg appeared to him, and easily tracked the herd in his mind.

He finally reached the herd, and, stopping a few minutes' walk from where the deer grazed, pulled his bow from the buckskin tube on his shoulder.

He pulled an arrow from his quiver as well, and knocked it back in a practiced movement, made easy from all the times he'd done it before.

He moved forward carefully, watching where he stepped so a stray twig would not betray his presence.

He eyed the herd with a somewhat mournful expression. There were two bucks, and eight does.

He was instantly reminded of the feeling of an animal's life being suddenly gone, like a candle being extinguished by a passing breeze.

Eragon reminded himself of what he had thought whilst traveling back to the Varden from Helgrind. _I will eat meat if there is a need to, and it's not that bad to indulge oneself sometimes_.

Still somewhat remorseful, Eragon took aim at one of the medium-sized doe's heart, and shot. He immediately reached again to his quiver as the deer began to flee, put a new arrow in place, and fired at the smallest doe.

His arrow hit her in the side as all the other deer scampered from sight.

He ran over to the small doe, which was still alive, pulled his knife, and uttered in the ancient language, "I thank you for your sacrifice. Sleep peacefully." Eragon then stabbed, quickly ending her life, and winced as he felt her life force vanish.

He then stood up, gathered the small doe, then the larger one, and set off south east, toward Carvahall.

Eragon was about two leagues from the edges of Carvahall when he stopped, by his reckoning, and it was almost dark.

The sun was falling rapidly toward the distance, and the light was receding just as swiftly. Eragon made camp in a small clearing, and then gathered together the rocks and wood necessary to create a fire.

He carefully cleared a space on the ground beneath his feet, and created a small fire.

He ate a warm dinner made of bread and cheese, toasted slightly by tongues of the fire.

After finishing his small dinner, Eragon walked away to another clearing, this one larger. He could still see the fire of his camp, but here he was far enough away that when Saphira's egg appeared as it had before, nothing would be harmed.

He leaned against a tree at the edge of the clearing, and readied himself for what was to come.

He had not needed to wait long before a green-tinted explosion shattered the fragile silence. **(3.)**

The ground near Eragon was scorched, as well as the trees near him. Smoke rose into the air from where the egg had forcefully pushed aside all the matter that had previously resided in its place.

And in the center, unhurt from it's rough trip, was Saphira's dark blue egg, steam still rising from it's smooth surface.

Eragon let it cool for a few minutes, then walked over, picked up the egg, and walked back towards his camp. **(4.)**

He set the egg down, and unfolded his bed-roll. He laid upon it, and pulled Saphira's egg close to his chest.

He then thought, _How long has it been since Saphira has slept in my arms? _He then chuckled at the absurd mental image of himself pulling the giant dragoness to his chest and holding her like fluffy pillow.

That was his final thought as he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

In the morning, Eragon threw some water, then dirt over the smoldering remains of his fire.

He ate a breakfast of porridge, and then started packing his things. He folded his bed-roll around Saphira's egg, then put it in his pack, protecting it even more than it's thick shell already did.

He shouldered the pack and his buckskin tube, and then hoisted both deer over his shoulders.

After about an hour and a half of walking, he came to the roaring Igualda Falls. The crashing of water against stone was loud, and he could hear nothing but his own thoughts.

He looked out towards the valley, thinking of how long it had been since he had seen the tranquil scene before him.

When Eragon arrived at Carvahall, he went straight to the butcher, Sloan. He hid his anger at what the man in front of him had yet to do under a calm face. He hoped that this time, the butcher would not betray Carvahall.

"Good day, Sloan. It was a fine hunt for me, and I was hoping you would clean the deer for me. You can keep the pelt, if you want, and a fourth of the smaller deer."

Sloan seemed surprised at the good bargain and how pleasant Eragon was acting. The man consented, although he did so with his usual animosity, trying to pick a fight.

Eragon ignored this, however, and as he turned to the door, he told the man he would return shortly.

Eragon, fondly remembering the trouble Roran had given him about relaying the message for Katrina to Horst, set out to look for her.

After communicating his cousin's message, and avoiding her questions about his recent growth, he set off to find the elusive man known as Brom.

Or, as Eragon's mind whispered to itself, _Father._

He found him telling the young children a story about a mischievous dog's escapades, and all the trouble he had managed to get into. The children were all laughing and clapping by the end of the story, and scattered off to return to their parents.

With some difficulty, Eragon approached Brom, reliving the memory of his lifeless face and the gaping wound that had undone him.

When Eragon was right in front of the man, he noticed the man's eyes and fist clench quickly, and a deep longing to finally acknowledge Brom as his father overtook the Dragon Rider.

* * *

**1. ****Just to clear up, Eragon basically looks like he did when he was 15, but with the muscles he had right before the Blood Oath Celebration. So he doesn't look like an elf at all, or have any of the physical effects the dragons have on their riders.**

**2. ****For those who don't know, the wise and powerful Wikipedia says a league is "the distance a person or horse could walk in an hour" I just learned that. Maybe you did too. If not, guess I'm the only one that sucks at geography.**

**3. ****Arya meant to send Saphira's egg to Brom, but instead, sent it to Eragon because he is Brom's son. So, technically, it wouldn't matter where he was, because wherever he was geographically, he WAS still Brom's son. Hope that clears that up. **

**4. ****The reason Saphira didn't hatch immediately when Eragon touched her egg is because she didn't hatch right away originally. Eragon is definitely still her rider, (or will be). **

**Anyhow... I hope you enjoyed it. *Cringe***

**I had wrote this ages ago, and, while sitting bored in the library at my school, decided to revisit it. I made some revisions, and then decided, "What the hell, let's go ahead and post it."**

**Anyhow, thanks for taking the time to read this piece of crap! Review if you have something nice or constructive to say, and fuck off if ya don't~!**

**I know it's not the best, but any flamers shall be hunted down and murdered. I find myself needing some more fertilizer for my tomato plant...**

**Flock on,**  
**Captain**


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